Market Comment - 19.08.2021

ZSE weakens further… The ZSE faltered for the fourth consecutive session weighed down mainly by selected heavies and mid-tier counters as profit taking took its toll. All the four indices in our review ended pointing southwards as the Mining Index suffered the greatest knock of 1.11% to close at 6050.75pts weighed down by Bindura and RioZim that let go 1.61% and 0.18% apiece. The primary All Share Index slipped 0.79% to 6848.48pts while, the Industrials shed 0.78% to 22580.16pts. The blue chips Index went down 0.88% to end at 3637.59pts. Hotelier African Sun was the worst performer of the day on a 8.37% decline to $7.2205 while, Econet dipped 8.17% to settle at $36.3517, on profit taking. Fast foods group Simbisa trimmed 6.98% to close at $40.0000 while, banking group First Capital plunged 5.65% to $3.5556 reversing yesterday’s gains. Completing the fallers’ list was brick manufacturers Willdale which retreated 3.08% to end pegged at $3.1209. Fidelity topped the winners of the day as the life assurer garnered 15.00% to $11.5000 followed by, pharmaceutical group Medtech that rebounded 8.81% to $0.2730. Art rose 5.00% to end at $7.9879 while, logistics concern Unifreight improved 4.98% to $29.9200. Capping the day’s winners was apparel retailer Edgars on a 4.11% gain that took its price to $3.4444. A total of forty-one counters traded on the bourse distributed into fifteen gainers, twenty fallers and six that traded unchanged as the market closed with a negative breadth of five. Activity aggregates were depressed in Thursday’s session as seen in volumes that declined 26.03% to 5.68m shares while, value outturn dropped 65.99% to $103.77m. Volume leaders of the day were OKZIM, ART, Star Africa and Bindura with respective contributions of 21.98%, 20.63%, 19.58% and 15.15% to the outturn. Value leaders were ZB, Delta and OKZIM which claimed a combined 62.95% of the total. The Old Mutual Exchange Traded Fund lost a further 7.34% to $2.2702 while, no trades were recorded on the VFEX.